A/N. I seem to be on a roll – third chapter in 4 days. Must be all the reviews I've been getting – you guys are fantastic! Here's chapter 14 – Gibbs' POV on the last scene and a teeny bit more story. Hope you enjoy. :D

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'Sir? Sir? Can you hear me?' Gibbs opened his eyes to see a fireman who couldn't have been more than twenty years old hovering over him. Damn, he was getting old. He was feeling pretty old right now, he admitted to himself, and he didn't even remember closing his eyes. He didn't even know whether he'd fallen asleep or passed out. It had been one hell of a day, he told himself in his defence. He had woken up in ICU, and that had only been the start of his problems. Both he and Ducky had been lucky to survive when the celtic box had exploded. The heavy metal bed had sheltered them from most of the impact of the blast, and the cupboard they'd landed behind had prevented them being hit by most of the shrapnel. His body had shielded Ducky from the remainder. He was sure there were a couple of pieces of metal embedded in his leg muscles, he thought a couple of his ribs might be broken, and he had definitely torn the stitches holding his side together, but it could have been a lot worse. They had also been lucky that the explosion had destroyed enough of the doorway to allow them to crawl out over the rubble, but not enough to cause the ceiling to collapse on their heads. It could have been a hell of a lot worse. They'd made it into the corridor, but he hadn't had the strength to stand, and he wasn't about to ask Ducky to carry him. Instead, he had leaned back against the opposite wall, and Ducky had been persuaded to leave him behind and go for help. The older man had just climbed to his feet when they'd heard Abby's voice. A few moments later, she and Tony had become visible through the dust cloud as they sank to the floor just a couple of feet away.

Gibbs wouldn't have believed it possible, but DiNozzo looked even worse than he had back in the apple shed, and a hell of a lot worse than he had earlier that day. Ducky was right – whatever Tony had been up to, he hadn't been spending much time considering his own health. The fact that he had made his way here, to ICU, when everyone else had been running in the opposite direction, had told Gibbs everything he needed to know.

In fact, the look of anguish on both the kids' faces right now was heartbreaking. Damn! When had he started thinking of Tony like that? He'd always been overprotective of Abby, and sometimes of Ducky, though the medical examiner was far too old to fit in with the definition of 'kids'. DiNozzo though, he'd always been just another agent. When had that changed? It was no good, he realised. Tony was definitely one of 'his' now, though he might be more suited to the role of recalcitrant younger brother than anything else.

'Abigail? Anthony?' Ducky interrupted his contemplation. He watched as Abby jumped up and flung her arms around the medical examiner, leaving DiNozzo on the floor looking decidedly queasy and close to passing out.

'DiNozzo, you all right?' he asked. Tony's eyes snapped open and his head spun towards the sound of his voice. For a moment Gibbs saw relief in the younger man's eyes, then the junior agent swayed and moved away just in time to avoid throwing up all over his team leader. How had the kid allowed himself to get into this state? Damn, Ducky had been right again. Gibbs had really screwed this one up. DiNozzo was going to need a firm hand from now on if he going was to rest enough to recover. Not right now though. Right now the younger man looked like what he needed was someone to stop him passing out in his own vomit. Well, Gibbs could do that. He reached around DiNozzo's back and grasped the junior agent's arm firmly. He couldn't believe how much the younger man was shaking – it was a wonder he'd managed to make it to the first floor before he collapsed. The kid was an idiot for even trying. Gibbs felt a surge of affection for the younger man. He pulled him closer, until the junior agent's head was resting on his shoulder.

'You're okay Tony. Take it easy, I've got you,' he spoke softly, in a voice he usually reserved for children and frightened animals. Despite this, he felt DiNozzo tense for a moment, then relax against his side. Within a few moments, the kid was unconscious. 'You're an idiot, DiNozzo,' he had told the unhearing figure. 'I'm not worth this.'

Gibbs hadn't remembered closing his eyes too, but he guessed he must have done.

'Sir?' the fireman said, more insistently. Gibbs looked to his right. DiNozzo had neither moved nor woken up. 'Sir, we need to get you out of here.' The fireman informed him.

'See to him first,' he gestured towards to unconscious man. The fireman nodded and lifted the junior agent into his arms. As soon as they had disappeared, the fireman was replaced by another, slightly older model. Ducky was hovering beside him.

'Duck, I need your cell phone,' Gibbs insisted. The older man, knowing when to argue and when not to, handed the item over without comment. Gibbs turned to the fireman. 'Take Dr Mallard to wherever they've taken Special Agent DiNozzo, make sure he's checked over and don't let either of them out of your sight,' he ordered.

'Jethro, I'm…' Ducky began.

'That's an order,' he insisted.

'Sir, you can't…' the fireman was silenced by the famous Gibbs glare.

'Just do it.'

'Yes Sir.'

Once the two had gone, Gibbs dialled the director and gave him a situation report. It seemed to take longer than usual – he was sure he was slurring, though he didn't remember drinking any bourbon recently.

'I want two teams on the hospital around the clock,' he requested, though both he and the director knew he wouldn't be taking no for an answer. 'I want protection for Abby and Ducky whenever they're outside the hospital or the navy yard and I want DiNozzo where I can watch his back. Until I testify, they're all in danger. I need…' He stifled a groan as a particularly deep breath resulted in a stabbing pain through his side. He looked down to see more blood soaking through his hospital gown.

'Jethro..?' The director's voice had been transmitting loud and clear, but suddenly he seemed a long way away. 'Jethro, talk to me.'

'I think I'm going to pass out again,' he murmured, dropping the phone. The young fireman had returned. Gibbs felt himself being lifted, and pain flared across his body. Within moments, he too was unconscious.